Deadlifts, pull-ups, farmer's carries, anything where you're gripping hard, and there's a nagging pain on the outside of your elbow. If that's you, this is almost certainly tennis elbow, and despite the name, it has nothing to do with whether you've ever picked up a racquet. What's actually going on Tennis elbow, or lateral epicondylalgia, affects the tendons on the outside of your elbow where your forearm muscles attach, specifically the ones responsible for extending your w

You rolled it, felt that sickening twist, and now you're standing there wondering if it's a bad sprain or something broken, and whether you actually need to go get it x-rayed. Here's how to work that out. The test emergency departments actually use There's a well-validated clinical tool called the Ottawa Ankle Rules, used in emergency departments specifically to work out who needs an x-ray and who doesn't. An x-ray is generally recommended if there's bone tenderness right at

Clicking on its own usually isn't the problem. It's clicking plus an ache around the front of your knee, especially at the bottom of a squat or on the way back up, that's actually worth paying attention to. Here's what's likely going on. What's causing it This combination, front-of-knee ache with clicking or grinding on loaded knee bend, is the classic presentation of patellofemoral joint pain, sometimes called "runner's knee" even though it's just as common in lifters. It ha

Perth's pole dance community has grown into something genuinely impressive over the last few years, with studios across the city running everything from beginner fundamentals through to competition-level training. What doesn't get talked about as much is how physically demanding pole actually is, and how often it leads to injury. One study following pole dancers found that just over half had experienced a shoulder injury, roughly a third had dealt with a wrist injury, and abo

One second you're running normally, the next there's a sharp pain in the back of your calf, sometimes described as being kicked or hit from behind. If that just happened to you, here's what it actually means and what to do next. That specific sensation, a sudden sharp pain with no contact involved, is the classic sign of a calf strain, most often in the gastrocnemius muscle. It's common in running, tennis, and anything involving quick pushing off or changes of pace, which is

New Year, New Me! - how to safely get back into exercise and minimise the risk of injury